Pending in Havemeyer

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At least, I think 7 Pleasant View is within the development’s boundaries — anti-disirregardless, this 1951 house was listed at $2.150 million 15 days ago and has been reported as pending this morning. The sellers paid $1.649 million (on a $1.525 million ask) in mid-2020, chased a few dust bunnies out from under the beds and otherwise pretty much left it alone — see list of maintenance items performed during their ownership, below.

There was a time not so long ago when the actual “winners” of these price wars were revealed upon resale a few years later to have been those who’d bid and lost. That’s often no longer true these days; we’ll see if it reverts to form in the next cycle.

2020 Basement:

As Renovated, 2023:

Letitia then, Letitia now

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NY AG LETITIA JAMES INDICTED ON FEDERAL BANK FRAUD, FALSE CLAIMS CHARGES:

New York state Attorney General Letitia James was indicted Thursday by a federal grand jury in Virginia on charges of bank fraud and making false claims to a financial institution that netted her nearly $19,000 in savings on a loan for a second home, according to the Department of Justice.

The indictment was handed up in the Eastern District of Virginia, where former FBI Director James Comey was indicted Sept. 25 on charges of lying to Congress and obstruction of justice

“No one is above the law. The charges as alleged in this case represent intentional, criminal acts and tremendous breaches of the public’s trust,” US Attorney Lindsey Halligan said in a statement. “The facts and the law in this case are clear, and we will continue following them to ensure that justice is served.”

James responded in a statement: “This is nothing more than a continuation of the president’s desperate weaponization of our justice system. He is forcing federal law enforcement agencies to do his bidding, all because I did my job as the New York State Attorney General.”

“These charges are baseless, and the president’s own public statements make clear that his only goal is political retribution at any cost,” she added. “The president’s actions are a grave violation of our Constitutional order and have drawn sharp criticism from members of both parties.”

If convicted on both counts, James faces up to 60 years in prison and a fine of up to $2 million.

James, 66, bought the three-bedroom, one-bathroom Norfolk, Va., home in August 2020 for roughly $137,000, most of which was financed with a $109,600 loan that prohibited it from being used as a rental investment property, prosecutors alleged.

That allowed her “to obtain favorable loan terms not available for investment properties,” they noted in the five-page filing, saving her “approximately $18,933 over the life of the loan.”

When a Post reporter visited the Norfolk home in April, neighbors said they had never seen James at the property.

“What we’re seeing today is nothing less than the weaponization of the Justice Department to punish those who hold the powerful accountable,” Democratic New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement.

AI Overview

New York Governor Kathy Hochul has publicly and consistently supported Attorney General Letitia James's civil fraud lawsuit against Donald Trump

. Her statements have praised James's integrity and commitment to justice, particularly following the February 2024 verdict that found Trump liable for fraudulent business practices in the state. 

Key statements and positions from Governor Hochul include:

  • February 2024 verdict: After the court found Trump and his company liable for fraud, Hochul affirmed the judgment, stating that it sends a message that no one is above the law in New York. She noted that the law applies equally to a former president and an ordinary businessperson.

  • Reassurance for New York businesses: In the wake of the judgment against Trump, Hochul sought to calm fears among other business owners that the ruling would chill the state's commercial climate. She stated that law-abiding businesspeople have "nothing to worry about," characterizing the Trump case as an "extraordinary circumstance".

  • November 2023 trial testimony: While the trial was underway, Hochul criticized Trump's behavior during his testimony. She said he was "throwing temper tantrums" and verbally attacking court staff, calling his conduct a "disgrace". She also expressed confidence that he would be held accountable for his actions.

  • October 2025 federal indictment of James: Following the federal indictment of Attorney General James in October 2025, which many critics characterized as politically motivated retribution, Hochul blasted the move. She posted on social media that it was a "weaponization of the Justice Department to punish those who hold the powerful accountable" and defended James's integrity.

  • DNC speech: During the 2024 Democratic National Convention, Hochul delivered a fiery speech describing Trump as "a fraud, a philanderer, and a felon". She highlighted his history of alleged fraudulent and questionable business dealings. 

The cheese eating, taxpaying peasants in the Land of Pepé Le Pew can only hope that they'll get a visit from L'équipe DOGE

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Now French “Experts” Say Our Teddy Bears Need More Diversity and Realism

From LegaIInsurrection:

Leslie Eastman:

“Too Cute to be Wild: What Teddy Bears Reveal about Our Disconnection from Nature” argues that the staple of children’s toys, teddy bears, may also distort their understanding of real wildlife because the toys often bear little resemblance to actual animals. Dr. Nicolas Mouquet and colleagues analyzed over 400 teddy bears and found their forms and colors diverge sharply from real bears, and from their “biodiversity”-oriented perspective determined that stuffed animals lead children to hold unrealistic mental models of animals.

For over 100 years, teddy bears have been a hallmark of childhood nurseries, ubiquitously embedded in our early memories and rarely the object of deep scrutiny.

However, according to a paper in BioScience by Dr. Nicolas Mouquet (CRNS) and colleagues, the humble teddy bear is much more than a mere plaything. Instead, the authors suggest that the beloved plushes play a pivotal role in our early conception of nature, potentially shaping the ways we interact with the natural world throughout our lives.

“For many Westerners, the very first intimate, emotional bond with nature may not come from a walk in the woods, but from early exposure to representations of nature, through illustrated books, toys, or plush animals,” explain the authors, who argue that emotional bonds such as these can persist for a lifetime.

At issue, then, is whether childhood toys are up to the task of fostering a realistic conception of nature. Unfortunately, say the authors, there may be serious downsides when they fall short: “If the bear that comforts a child looks nothing like a real bear, the emotional bridge it builds may lead away from, rather than toward, true biodiversity.”

Eastman: “The actual study is a real hoot. The authors want toy manufacturers to make more realistic bears.”

Designers and educators should therefore reflect on the visual and tactile traits embedded in the plush toys we offer children. More generally, diversifying the plush palette to include ecologically grounded forms, species with more accurate morphologies and colorations, could help restore some alignment between emotional connection and biological reality. Enhancing the emotional relevance of biodiversity through tangible objects offers indeed a low-tech, high-impact complement to traditional conservation outreach.

“There is so much to unpack here, I hardly know where to begin.”

For starters, perhaps in the nearly childless work of eco-activists, there is clearly a lack of understanding of the purpose of toys, which is comfort and familiarity, not zoological education. A child’s affection for a plush toy fosters empathy, imagination, and emotional development more than factual misconceptions.Research in developmental psychology suggests that symbolic play strengthens empathy and cognitive flexibility, even when it is based on fantasy.

All of the above are essential for the development of social skills and emotional intelligence. A more trustworthy study reveals a link between “emotion regulation” and success in education and careers.

Furthermore, by preschool age, most children recognize that teddy bears are symbolic of something. Studies on cognitive development show that while children may attribute feelings to toys, they rarely confuse them with real animals, minimizing the risk of “warped” ecological perceptions.

Reviewing the acknowledgements, I note that this “study” was funded by LabEx CeMEB (Laboratory of Excellence – Mediterranean Center for Environment and Biodiversity). LabEx CeMEB is a French research center in Montpellier focused on pushing environmental activist agendas that usually have human activities as the root cause of any problem.

Until this day, I had never considered that lack of realism in my stuffed toys a problem. And, it’s still not. This study simply confirms the bias of scientists funded to provide data supporting agendas and narratives. Here is confirmation of my assessment under real-world conditions:

FWIW: Abandon all hope, ye who enter here — the French government doesn’t seem to be receptive to the idea of eliminating useless departments and programs and the people in them.

Here, for instance, was state-owned France24’s take on Musk and his DOGE Team:

Musk's DOGE team raises major cyber security concerns

Washington (AFP) – Young engineers deployed across the US government as part of Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency have triggered alarm throughout Washington's security establishment. 

Issued on: 13/02/2025 - 02:43

Never before has a group of unvetted and inexperienced outsiders gained such access to the nerve center of the US government, according to security experts.

The campaign, led by Musk's DOGE team, began at the Treasury Department when they took control of the US government's payment system -- a move justified as monitoring public spending. 

From there, it expanded into an unprecedented cost-cutting initiative, with software engineers spreading across federal agencies, taking control of computer systems.

They have disrupted and in some cases effectively shuttered organizations such the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Department of Education, and the General Services Administration (GSA), which manages much of the government's infrastructure and building portfolio.

"In the span of just weeks, the US government has experienced what may be the most consequential security breach in its history," wrote Bruce Schneier, a security technologist at the Harvard Kennedy School, and Davi Ottenheimer of Inrupt, a data infrastructure company, in Foreign Policy.

The situation is particularly critical at the Bureau of Fiscal Services, the Treasury unit managing all federal payments -— a crucial chokepoint of the US economy. 

….

The computer systems in question rank among the world's most complex and sensitive. 

Yet DOGE is staffed primarily with individuals connected to Musk's companies and young tech professionals in their 20s -— virtually none of whom have been vetted, or have government experience. 

As for Musk himself -- who is unelected -- there are concerns about his conflicts of interest, as his companies hold several major government contracts, and whether access to sensitive data will give his business empire an even greater advantage.

Meanwhile, senior government workers with decades of system expertise have been blocked from buildings and sidelined by DOGE teams, raising concerns among those who understand the intricate vulnerabilities of government technology.

The consequences are already emerging. 

At the Office of Personnel Management, the government's HR department, reports indicate DOGE-associated individuals connected an unauthorized server to the network and are using AI software on US citizens' personal data -- in violation of federal privacy laws.

The blitz on government has sparked numerous lawsuits, forcing some retreat from DOGE, with a Trump official on Wednesday acknowledging to a judge that a staffer should not have had full system access.

In another security slip-up, according to The New York Times, the CIA sent an unclassified email listing all employees hired by the spy agency over the last two years to comply with cost-cutting efforts spearheaded by DOGE.

Too much power

Security experts Schneier and Ottenheimer are especially troubled by the removal of career officials who managed security measures. 

"The Treasury's computer systems have such an impact on national security that they were designed with the same principle that guides nuclear launch protocols: No single person should have unlimited power," they wrote. 

Making changes to critical financial systems "traditionally requires multiple authorized personnel working in concert," they said.

Musk, who frequently posts on the social platform he owns, X, dismisses government workers as either inept or politically compromised -- a "deep state" aligned with Democrats and opposed to Trump. 

The risk of mistakes has alarmed cybersecurity experts, including Michael Daniel, former White House cybersecurity coordinator under Barack Obama and current head of the Cyber Threat Alliance.

"The Chinese, the Russians, other intelligence services -– they put their A-teams on projects that target the US government, and they will exploit any opportunity they have," Daniel warned. 

"This assumption that obviously everybody that works for the federal government is stupid and incompetent, and it's so simple that it doesn't even matter who you put on the job... that's just incorrect." 

"With government systems, things are not necessarily obvious on the surface. And it takes experience to understand what some of those issues are."

© 2025 AFP

I'm certainly qualified for any of these positions, but so, I'm sure, are most of you readers, and since I'm busy, have at 'em; Greenwich Invisible awaits

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You’ll recall that when they first crawled out from under a rock, the Ladies of Greenwich Invisible claimed to be “non-partisan”. Ah, for the good old days, when they (promised) to address non-partisan issues

From Greenwich Patriots:

Indivisible Is Hiring. Here's How Much It Pays.

Indivisible might not pay every single aging boomer that hits the streets with a tattered “No Kings in America” sign to protest...

But Indivisible DOES pay key organizers, fundraisers, digital campaigners, etc.

Thanks for reading Greenwich Patriots Newsletter! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

As a matter of fact, a recent job was just advertised in a Connecticut Indivisible Facebook group for an Associate Organizing Director.

“The Associate Organizing Director coaches and manages an average of 5 Organizers and Organizing Managers, helps design and implement turf plans in key states, tracks progress towards overall team goals, builds a positive culture on their team, and leads cross-department projects and programs that advance organization-wide strategic priorities,” says the job listing.

You’ll need about 5-7 years of experience, and have to prove your cred as an intersectional social justice warrior if you want to get the job... which pays $85,150 - $104,000 USD per year.

If that doesn’t float your boat, don’t worry.

Indivisible has a number of other paid opportunities available for folks interested in “changing what’s politically possible” by “fighting the racist, misogynistic, plutocratic, and authoritarian agenda trumpeted by Trump and the GOP congress.”

You could join the “operational backbone” of Indivisible’s mobilization program—the “Critical Mass” team—as a Mobilization Associate Operations Director or as a Mobilization Director where you would get to manage event operations, data infrastructure, and sustained mobilization tools. The Associate Director gets paid $85,150 - $104,000, while the Director can rake in up to $124,000.

There are a couple fundraising jobs available, including a Senior Associate at $59,400 and a Senior Major Gifts Manager at $108,150.

If you’re more of a keyboard warrior, the social media role pays $59,400 - $76,150.

If you’d rather work on “holding extremist Republican Members of Congress accountable” and combatting “authoritarianism” then you might want to consider the Deputy Policy Director role where you can work on leveraging “key opportunities” in Congress to “frustrate the MAGA agenda.” You’ll get some sweet benefits, along with a professional development stipend, and an employer-matched 401(k) plan for this $85,150 - $104,000 position.

Indivisible is also willing to shell out up to $212,910 for a General Counsel to serve as its principal legal advisor.

I remember Britain

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“And yes, Sawyer looks exactly like you've pictured him.”

The judge, Jamie Sawyer, explained to the men that he was was convinced their actions were "racially motivated, at least in part."

Joel Abbott

Oct 8, 2025

You'd be hard pressed to find a country where things are more upside down.

Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu from Ethiopia entered the UK by boat and made his way to the town of Epping, England. Once there, he decided that he wanted to have sex with all the teenage girls.

No, really, within a few days of arriving in England, he sexually assaulted multiple girls.

From the Independent:

During his three-day trial at Chelmsford Magistrates' Court, evidence was put forward that he told two teenagers he wanted to 'have a baby with each of them' and attempted to kiss them.

He then went on to put his hand on one of the girls' thighs and stroke her hair, the court heard.

Kebatu was also found to have sexually assaulted a woman by trying to kiss her, putting his hand on her leg, and telling her she was pretty.

The incident with one of the girls happened after she offered him a slice of pizza.

The girl told police she 'froze' as the defendant sexually assaulted her and had told Kebatu, 'No, I'm 14' when he spotted her again in Epping the following day.

The court heard his response to the teenager was: 'No, no, it doesn't matter, you could come back to the Bell Hotel with me.'

Abbot:

Instead of being deported, or perhaps executed as a public example of what civilized countries do to foreigners who try to rape their children, Kebatu received a measly year in jail.

Meanwhile, a crowd of 500 locals protested outside the Bell Hotel, which is one of many across the country housing migrants on the British taxpayers' dime, on July 17. These Englishmen, upset that their government was importing rapists from other countries into their community, had signs saying "protect our kids."

50 counter-protesters came out to defend the rights of migrants to live in free housing in England. As tensions grew, police struggled to maintain peace, leading to several arrests.

The first three men sentenced were given longer sentences than the migrant sex offender.

Stuart Williams is a painter and decorator who received two years and four months for "kicking out at an officer" and climbing onto the roof of a school as he made his way onto the hotel roof, where he "attempted to ring the bell thereon."

Martin Peagram, a local roofer and young father of two, was given two years and two months for kicking a police officer and "throwing a can."

Supermarket worker Dean Smith was also given one year and ten months for "punching an officer's [riot] shield."

The judge, Jamie Sawyer, explained to the men that he was was convinced their actions were "racially motivated, at least in part."

And yes, Sawyer looks exactly like you've pictured him.

Each of you, what you did went beyond protest and that became criminal when you acted as you did.

While that may be true, what does it say when a local painter, grocery store worker, and roofer trying to protect their kids from foreign predators are given more jail time than the foreign predators?

As a result of mass protests, the Bell Hotel is now scheduled to be closed, as are many other migrant hotels across the nation.

As writer Tom Slater noted in an August op-ed for The Spectator, however, the problem is far from over.

This was never just about hotels anyway. This is about communities being forced to pay the price for successive governments losing control of the borders. Until that fundamental failure is corrected, the unrest is going nowhere.


It’s frightening to think how close we came to this in the last election.

Well, Vermont; it's cold in Vermont, and she probably confused Clapton with Pinkard & Bowden

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…. the teacher, 47-year-old Melissa Martin, was allegedly acting all sorts of goofy, then abruptly left the classroom and walked outside where a concerned student followed her. Next, she looked at the student and thought he was her dog, and told him, "Teddy, why are you off your leash? ... Teddy, get back inside."

“JoAn Canning, superintendent of the Barre School District, told WPTZ that Martin has been a permanent substitute in the district for around three years.

“Canning said she is taking "personnel steps" in regard to Martin's employment. She added that Martin does not have access to the school at this point. She said despite the concerning situation, “parents should feel confident that their students are safe at school.”

Why should they feel that?

North Street Industrial Complex

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I’ve written about 490 North Street currently priced at $4.275 million, a couple of times, here, and here. Today Brother Gideon bestirred himself to make the long trek up there — almost to Dingletown (!) — and reports “Finally went and looked at this place … I liked it!”. That’s probably the kind of detailed report you’ve been waiting for before deciding whether to inspect the house yourself; if so, your wait is over.

Floodplain sale

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150 Pemberwick Road was listed at $1.675 million and has sold to a NYC buyer (ZIP 10022) for $1,535,625.

I’m always a little surprised to see people buy in a flood zone or, as here, the Byram River floodway. I get it: the town approved this construction in 2015, so it must be just fine, but given that river’s history of catastrophic flooding every few years, I’m not sure I’d entirely trust the town’s judgment. Byram native Freddie Camillo is familiar with the problem; here’s what he said at a community meeting in 2023 when asked about the subject:

“The Byram River has been flooding for a century [far longer than that, Freddie, but we get the point — Ed.] In 1955 there were houses flowing down the river. This will not cure it …. When you get 8 inches in 9 hours there’s nowhere for the water to go.”

“When you have flash floods, sometimes there’s nothing you can do.”

We had some pretty intensive flooding here in 2021, but the 1955 event was even more exciting:

Byram River Flood – Today in History: October 15

The full impact of the flood in the Pemberwick section was seen clearly through the eyes of one resident whose family was evacuated from their newly constructed home on Hallock Drive—while he aided those in another flood-damaged section of town. Shortly after the family’s evacuation, the Byram River swept the house from its foundation. When the good Samaritan returned from his rescue efforts, he found his family safe, but his home, into which he had put his life savings, was gone.

Of course, 150 Pemberwick is nowhere near Hallock Drive — well, it’s at least 150 yards away, and a yard’s as good as a mile, right? Unless, of course, your yard is swept downstream.